OUR PROJECTS
The Wendy Bennett Lab conducts research to reduce chronic disease risk and promote health equity to promote long-term health and wellness for women and their families.
Healthy for Two
Healthy for Two/ Healthy for You
This study tests whether having a health coach in pregnancy helps limit gestational weight gain, boost mood and sleep quality, and assist in returning to pre-pregnancy weight in postpartum. Recruiting from nine participating Johns Hopkins prenatal care practices, this trial has finished recruiting 384 patients. |
Healthy for Two– Home Visiting
This study builds upon the first iteration of the health coaching intervention, now offered in Spanish and tested in Maryland Early Home Visiting Programs. Now incorporating a web based app and materials designed to reach a broader population, this clinical trial is currently recruiting. |
Look AHEAD Sex Hormone Ancillary Study
We are examining the role of sex hormones (estradiol, testosterone and sex hormone binding globulin) on cardiometabolic risk factors and diabetes complications among 2,334 people living with type 2 diabetes and obesity from the Look AHEAD study.
Daily 24
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Project Summary:
This study tested whether aligning sleeping and eating with the natural circadian rhythm improves cardiometabolic outcomes, recruiting 547 participants from the PaTH Network. |
Implications:
The frequency, rather than the timing, of meals is a stronger determinant of weight change over time. When counseling patients about weight gain prevention, limiting the frequency of large meals is more beneficial than restricting eating windows. |
Media Coverage:
Read more about the Daily24 findings here: |
Select Publications
- Aboumatar H, Pitts S, Sharma R, Das A, Smith BM, Day J, Holzhauer K, Yang S, Bass EB, Bennett WL. Patient engagement strategies for adults with chronic conditions: an evidence map. Syst Rev. 2022 Mar 5;11(1):39. doi: 10.1186/s13643-021-01873-5. PMID: 35248149; PMCID: PMC8898416.
- Bennett WL, Wilson RF, Zhang A, Tseng E, Knapp EA, Kharrazi H, Stuart EA, Shogbesan O, Bass EB, Cheskin LJ. Methods for Evaluating Natural Experiments in Obesity: A Systematic Review. Ann Intern Med. 2018 Jun 5;168(11):791-800. doi: 10.7326/M18-0309. Epub 2018 May 1. PMID: 29710087.
- Bennett WL, Coughlin JW, Henderson J, Martin S, Yazdy GM, Drabo EF, Showell NN, McKinney C, Martin L, Dalcin A, Sanders R, Wang NY. Healthy for Two/Healthy for You: Design and methods for a pragmatic randomized clinical trial to limit gestational weight gain and prevent obesity in the prenatal care setting. Contemp Clin Trials. 2022 Feb;113:106647. doi: 10.1016/j.cct.2021.106647. Epub 2021 Dec 8. PMID: 34896296; PMCID: PMC8844210.
- Bennett WL, Martin L, Shea P, Perry JL, Sherer ML, Legato M, Klein SL. Establishment of a Private Foundation-Academic Partnership to Promote Careers of Early-Stage Investigators Examining the Influence of Sex and Gender on Health and Health Care. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2023 Aug;32(8):858-864. doi: 10.1089/jwh.2022.0510. PMID: 37585515; PMCID: PMC10457634.
- Venkataramani M, Ogunwole SM, Caulfield LE, Sharma R, Zhang A, Gross SM, Hurley KM, Lerman JL, Bass EB, Bennett WL. Maternal, Infant, and Child Health Outcomes Associated With the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children : A Systematic Review. Ann Intern Med. 2022 Oct;175(10):1411-1422. doi: 10.7326/M22-0604. Epub 2022 Sep 6. PMID: 36063550.
- Zhao D, Guallar E, Woolf TB, Martin L, Lehmann H, Coughlin J, Holzhauer K, Goheer AA, McTigue KM, Lent MR, Hawkins M, Clark JM, Bennett WL. Association of Eating and Sleeping Intervals With Weight Change Over Time: The Daily24 Cohort. J Am Heart Assoc. 2023 Feb 7;12(3):e026484. doi: 10.1161/JAHA.122.026484. Epub 2023 Jan 18. PMID: 36651320; PMCID: PMC9973633.